The Diversity Digest

Persist With Pride

Last weekend, we virtually celebrated our newest LGBTQ+ alumni at UCLA’s Lavender Graduation. The annual graduation ceremony includes awards that honor our new graduates. Each award has a namesake, many of which include leaders in our alumni community. The energy of this celebration is always of hope and horizons and also one of respect and reverence. The awards have always been a reminder of how our collective activism has persisted through generations of Bruins. They are symbolic of our collective persistence to make this world a better place — and we take pride in that. 

This week’s offerings continue to amplify the voices of our marginalized communities. We will be featuring how Bruins have been persistent in their work toward social change in the past, present and future. We hope it offers you ways our community has persisted, whether it be from finishing their degree, keeping history alive or sharing their stories in the face of adversity.

 

CONGRATULATE
Welcome our newest LGBTQ alumni from the class of 2020 by leaving a comment or tagging a post to UCLA Lambda Alumni Association’s Instagram. Check out their celebratory video for UCLA Lavender Graduation


WATCH
“Behind Every Good Man” is one of the many essential films in the Outfest UCLA Legacy Project. The film was made by Nicolai Ursin, M.F.A. '71, in the 1960s and provides a glimpse into the life of an African American trans woman. 

EAT
Order takeout from The Black Cat, designated as a Los Angeles Historic Cultural Monument for its early and significant role in the LGBTQ+ civil rights movement. The bar is Bruin-owned by Lindsay Kennedy '92.


LEARN
Join artist Alma López Gaspar de Alba and her partner, UCLA Professor Alicia Gaspar de Alba, for a conversation tracing queer Angeleno artists’ contributions to contemporary art in today’s event for Pride at the Fowler

UNDERSTAND
Last week’s Supreme Court decision on DACA has had an emotional impact on our undocumented community. Some of our undocumented alumni, like reporter Jeong Park '17 and high school teacher Angélica Reyes '16, M.Ed. '18, have publicly shared their sentiments for all of us to better understand the ruling's impact. 

ACT
Have a suggestion on how alumni can express their pride through actions? Share with us here.

As always, we love hearing from our community members. Feel free to share this with other Bruins you may know, and feel free to share the ways you have introspectively celebrated with us.

In Community,

The staff of UCLA Alumni Diversity Programs & Initiatives

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